President William Ruto on Sunday left the country for a State Visit to the United States accompanied by First Lady Rachel Ruto and close to a 30-member delegation.
What caught the eye is that Ruto appeared not to be boarding the Harambee One presidential jet that he has been using for State visits.
Ruto used the different jet barely a month after National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah remarked that there was a need to upgrade the presidential jet that was acquired close to three decades ago.
Clips shared by State House showed that the jet that Ruto boarded lacked the KAF 308 tail number that adorns the Harambee One.
Additionally, it lacked the three strips against a white background which symbolises the Kenyan flag.
Instead, the new jet that Ruto used had a yellow and blue strip instead of the Kenyan colours.
Additionally, Harambee One is usually adorned with “Republic of Kenya” logo and the nation's coat of arms which was lacking in the jet that Ruto boarded on Sunday.
Kimani Ichung’wah had remarked that there was a need to upgrade Kenya’s presidential jet which was first acquired in 1995.
The jet has served four presidents namely; Daniel Toroitich Arap Moi, Mwai Kibaki, Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto.
The Harambee One is a Fokker 70 Extended Range (ER) aircraft manufactured in the Netherlands.
At the time of its acquisition in 1995, Harambee One cost Kenya Ksh2.7 billion and was modified from a capacity of 70 passengers to 26 passengers.
The Office of the President did not issue a statement on why Ruto opted to use a different plane instead of Harambee One.
